Week 61: Adobe Illustrator

Flock of Doves © Karen Thiessen, 2013

Flock of Doves marks a massive leap in my Adobe Illustrator learning and thinking. I draw and collect shapes that inspire me. The dove is a potent Mennonite symbol that I have been exploring and playing with for years. In 2010 I designed a postcard for a local Mennonite church using the peace dove shape. To create that design, I combined hands-on collage with Photoshop skills.

Until very recently, I had little success with AI's live trace. Actually, it still doesn't work to my satisfaction, but I've created a happy (and time-consuming) compromise. I import Photoshop files into AI, lock the image and then trace the outline using the pen tool. Then I'm free to fill, scale, and repeat the traced motif to my heart's content. Now that I've figured this out, I feel like a kid in a candy store, so I'll be sharing more patterns based on this technique.

For those who celebrate Easter, Happy Good Friday and Easter to you all!